The simple recipe details
Coconut lime chicken is a quick skillet dinner where seared chicken simmers in a sauce of full-fat coconut milk, fresh lime juice, garlic, ginger, and cilantro. It cooks in about 30 minutes. The sauce is creamy from the coconut milk, with a fresh Thai-inspired flavor profile. Serve it over rice, cauliflower rice, or noodles.
What our readers are saying
It’s rare to find a dish that my whole crew will eat… this one does the trick! I’ve been making it for a few years now and make it in large batches b/c it holds up amazingly in the freezer and is a favorite to have on hand. I like to serve it with turmeric rice. Thank you for a fantastic recipe!
Jamie
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Related: Check out our 20-minute creamy coconut shrimp and our easy Thai basil chicken.
Why this recipe works
Searing the chicken first builds the brown bits in the bottom of the pan that the coconut sauce later picks up. The chicken finishes in the sauce on low heat, so it stays tender instead of drying out, and the sauce stays thick and creamy because we add the lime at the end.
How to make coconut lime chicken (step-by-step)
Ingredients that matter
Full fat coconut milk: Aroy-D is what we always buy. Light coconut milk and the watery cans make the sauce thin and they are the cause of nearly every “why is my sauce watery” comment we get. Coconut cream in a can will also work (any brand)
Lime (lots of it): The recipe is named for it. If you are lime-shy, start with half the juice and add more to taste, or use the zest of one lime plus less juice for brighter flavor without the sour edge.
Fresh ginger: Grated on a microplane. Powdered ginger does not deliver the same flavor here. If you only have powder, use half a teaspoon and accept that the sauce will taste flatter.
Breasts or thighs
Both work. Breasts pound out evenly and finish in about 6 to 8 minutes total. Boneless skinless thighs do not need pounding and cook for a few extra minutes per side, to an internal temp 165°F. Thighs hold their juiciness better and won’t really dry out if slightly overcooked, so they are more forgiving to the average cook.
Why is my sauce watery?
This is almost always a coconut milk issue. The watery cans (Silk, anything labeled light) do not have enough fat to give the sauce body. Three fixes.:
- Use full fat coconut milk and skip the chicken broth if the milk in the can has separated and/or is watery).
- Simmer the sauce a few extra minutes with the chicken back in to reduce.
- Whisk in a teaspoon of arrowroot or cornstarch slurry at the end if you want a thicker, glossier sauce. The dish is supposed to be a spoonable sauce over rice, not a gravy, so do not over-thicken.
Notes from Our Kitchen
Half a shallot might be plenty if you are not a shallot person. Multiple readers found the whole shallot overpowering, so use half a shallot if you are sensitive to the flavor. Or sub 1/4 to 1/2 yellow onion.
Hold a small portion of cilantro back for garnish. The cilantro that goes into the sauce wilts and disappears into the color of the dish, which is great for flavor but falls flat on presentation. A little chopped fresh cilantro on top when serving fixes both.
Add the lime juice after the heat is turned down. Acid plus high heat is what splits the coconut milk and makes the sauce separate. This is also why we do not boil the sauce.
If you find the sauce is a little too lime-forward after tasting, fish sauce is the secret that can help balance it out. A teaspoon of fish sauce or a tablespoon of coconut aminos rounds out the flavor without making the dish taste fishy or salty.
Make it your way
Shrimp instead of chicken: Skip the sear step, build the sauce as written, drop in raw shrimp at the simmer stage and cook until pink, about 5 to 6 minutes.
Cod or another firm white fish: Same approach as shrimp, gentler simmer, 6 to 8 minutes.
Basil instead of cilantro: Works as a one-for-one swap for cilantro-avoidant cooks, gives the dish more of a Thai basil curry character.
A spice kick: Red pepper flakes, sliced jalapeno, sliced serrano, or a teaspoon of red curry paste in the sauce all work. Add this in when you add the garlic so the heat releases the spice in the pan.
Storage and freezer notes
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to four days. Freezer keeps for up to 5-6 months in individual portions. The coconut sauce can split when it cools or thaws, which is normal. Reheat gently on the stovetop and stir, the sauce comes back together as it warms.
30-Minute Creamy Coconut Lime Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 shallot, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated on a microplane
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped, (plus more for topping)
- 1/3 cup lime juice, (about 2 limes)
- 4 chicken breasts, thighs work too, see notes
- 2 tbsp avocado oil, (or coconut oil)
- 1.5 cups coconut milk, see notes
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- Salt and pepper
- Lime slices for topping, (optional)
Instructions
- Prep shallot, garlic, ginger and cilantro as noted. Juice limes and set aside.1 shallot, diced, 4 cloves garlic, minced, 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated on a microplane, 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped, 1/3 cup lime juice
- Place the chicken breasts between two pieces of parchment paper and pound them down to make them even in thickness. Sprinkle each side of the chicken with salt and pepper.4 chicken breasts
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add avocado oil.2 tbsp avocado oil
- Once hot, add the chicken to the pan (you may have to cook the chicken in 2 batches depending on the size of your pan). Season with a little salt and pepper and cook, without disturbing for 3-4 minutes, until a nice brown crust has formed. Flip and cook another 3-4 minutes on the other side, until the chicken is mostly cooked through.Salt and pepper
- Remove chicken from the skillet and set aside. Lower the heat to medium-low.
- Add more oil if needed and add the shallot and garlic to the pan. Cook, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes.4 cloves garlic, minced, 1 shallot, diced
- Add chicken broth, coconut milk, lime juice, ginger and cilantro to the pan. Stir to mix, scraping up any browned bits remaining in the pan from when you cooked your chicken.1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated on a microplane, 1/3 cup lime juice, 1.5 cups coconut milk, 1/4 cup chicken broth, 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- Add the chicken breasts back to the skillet with the sauce. Cover and turn heat down to low. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until the chicken is fully cooked.
- Serve with rice, cauli rice, vegetables or potatoes. Spoon some sauce over everything for serving. Sprinkle with cilantro and garnish with lime slices (optional).
Notes
- You can use chicken thighs instead of breasts for this recipe. You should not have to pound the thighs (step 2). Adjust cooking time if needed to ensure the chicken is fully cooked.
- We use Aroy-D brand full-fat coconut milk. This is the thickest, creamiest coconut milk we have found. If you use a canned brand like Thai Kitchen or Native Forest, the milk might not be as thick and you can omit the chicken broth.
- Nutrition estimates are per serving and an estimate provided for reader benefit. See our full nutrition information disclosure here.
This was a very good coconut chicken flavor! My only change next time I make it will be to use half a shallot. The whole shallot was a bit overpowering. We fixed coconut rice to go with the chicken, and it was a really good weekday meal.
One of our family’s favourite dishes! Serve it with coconut jasmine rice & we find the sauce consistency perfect when served with rice.
Would love some suggestions for good veggie sides to go with it.
Glad you are enjoying the recipe! We like baby bok choi and broccoli for veggie sides with this one :).
Exactly as described. FAST and delicious and almost everything on-hand. I will be using this regularly; we all loved it and I made extra for the freezer when nobody wants to cook. The sauce was amazing; I love lime and coconut. Thanks so much!!
We enjoyed this dish. It was so easy that it was finished before the rice. Since I used Thai kitchen coconut milk, I followed the advice to not use chicken broth. It seemed a little bland so I added some chicken ‘better than bouillon’ as well as some chicken bouillon powder.
Good! Used a bit of chili oil to the avocado oil for the chicken. Then added serrano’s to the liquid and a agave. Read some of the comments and the coconut jasmine rice sounds great!!!
Delicious! 😋 I was in a mood, so ended up adding some Panang curry paste, some green curry paste and some eggplant annd a little basil with the cilantro… absolutely yummy! Thank you!
You’re welcome, your additions sound delicious!
Loved this. Heeded warning on another comment and didn’t add as much lime juice. People at work went crazy asking about what I was reheating at lunch time as it smelled soooooo good. I added extra garlic and cilantro cuz that’s how we roll in my house.
Hooray! Glad it was such a hit! And agreed on allllll the garlic and cilantro. Love it! Thanks for coming back to share how it went. 🙂
My son found this recipe and we made it today. We had it with coconut jasmine rice. All the flavors went together so nice! It tasted so good!
I made this last night and it was delicious!!!! So easy to make! This is now going to be a recipe I use on a regular basis. Thank you!!!
You’re very welcome, happy to hear that you’ll be making this one again :).
One of my newest fave go-tos! Soooo good! I air fry chicken thighs a bit first, eat it with rice, have added broccoli and mushrooms – delicious and quick!
YUM! I went to a Michelin star restaurant recently and was seriously craving a flavor similar to this soup that was served. This did not disappoint… I’ll be saving this and making it again and again.
We all thought it was too sour. Thats all we could taste so i added brown sugar to tame down the sourness. I’ll make it again and use like 2 tbsp lime juice.
Thanks for the review. Hopefully less lime suits your taste better next time.
Delicious! We make this all the time and it’s a family favorite!
Happy to hear that, thanks for coming back to leave a review 🙂
This is one of our favorite go-to Paleo recipes – thank you SO much for sharing!
We love hearing that! Thanks so much for taking the time to come leave a review. We really appreciate hearing from you. 🙂
Family loved this! I like it as is and also with some red pepper flakes. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
This was delicious! Tried it tonight for dinner and we decided we’re definitely adding it to the rotation of meals we eat often. Thanks for the recipe!
We tried this for dinner this week, but didn’t love it. Even without the chicken broth, the dish was watery, not creamy (as in, the sauce didn’t coat the chicken). Perhaps it needs some sort of thickener?
Depending on the type of coconut milk used this can be more watery. You can always add a thickener like corn starch or tapioca starch at the end if desired.
Had it tonight for dinner and enjoyed it! We used chicken broth so added corn starch to thicken the sauce as is used in your Tuscan Chicken recipe (one of our faves!) Like another reviewer, we added a slice of jalapeno pepper and slice of fresno chile – we like a little kick 🙂 We served over rice topped with cilantro, chopped fresh basil and chopped chives. The basil added another interesting layer of flavor. We’ll definitely be making this again!
Sounds amazing! Thanks for the review, we appreciate it 🙂
This recipe is amazing! We have added thai chilis for some spice! Make this dish often 😁🥳🥳
Happy to hear that Kim! Thai chilis sound like a great addition 🙂
A friend made and shared this recipe on Facebook. She said that it was amazing. Your nutrition facts don’t list sodium. Do you know how many grams of sodium are in your recipe?
Approx 400mg/serving but that will depend on the type of chicken broth used.
Been using this recipe over and over! It’s delicious, great for meal prep. I love adding the lime zest for extra flavor!
Happy to hear that!
This recipe was SO GOOD. I did half the amount of chicken and there was a great amount of sauce for it. I’m already wanting to make it again next week!
Missing something. Maybe curry. Kinda bland.
Can I make this in a crock pot ? If so how long ?
The sauce won’t thicken and the chicken won’t be browned like in the pictures, but you could throw everything in the crockpot on high for 3 hours or on low for 6 hours. It will be more like a soup with shredded chicken but still delicious 🙂
Where does the coconut flavor come in? I’m not seeing any coconut in the ingredient list.
From the coconut milk.
It’s rare to find a dish that my whole crew will eat… this one does the trick! I’ve been making it for a few years now and make it in large batches b/c it holds up amazingly in the freezer and is a favorite to have on hand. I like to serve it with turmeric rice. Thank you for a fantastic recipe!
You’re very welcome! Happy to hear everyone likes it and you’ve been making it for a while 🙂
Loved this! Made it with a few changes of onions instead of shallots and no chicken broth because we used silk brand coconut milk and it was delicious!! Served with jasmine rice and roasted veggies!! New family favorite for sure!!
Excellent! I added some red bell pepper and a small tablespoon of red curry paste. I didn’t have enough lime but it was delicious! Served with basmati rice with basil leaves. I will definitely make it again!
I made this on Saturday. So good! Will make again. Followed the recipe notes and didn’t add the chicken broth. The sauce consistency was perfect. Added the zest of one lime as per the suggestions of some others.
I do have a question, would you mind telling me how much shallot to use in tsp/Tbs. form? I never really know when a recipe calls for one shallot if they are referring to one bulb or the whole thing, both of which vary in size.
Thank you!!!
Glad you enjoyed the recipe. For the shallot, it refers to the entire shallot, so about 3-4 tbsp chopped.